Uncapped utility back Canan Moodie has been called up to the South Africa squad for the first time for the tour of Australia.
Moodie was included in a 34-man squad on Monday for two Rugby Championship encounters with the Wallabies.
The 19-year-old gets the nod in the absence of suspended wing Kurt-Lee Arendse and fellow flyer Cheslin Kolbe, who is recovering from a broken jaw.
Deon Fourie has also been selected, with hooker Bongi Mbonambi facing four weeks on the sidelines due to a knee injury sustained in training last week.
The world champions are smarting from a 35-23 defeat to New Zealand at Ellis Park on Saturday and will get an opportunity to respond at Adelaide Oval on August 27, with Australia also licking their wounds following a 48-17 drubbing at the hands of Argentina.
Springboks head coach Jacques Nienaber said: "Bongi has been ruled out for four weeks, but Deon, who is an experienced hooker and flank, has been practising his lineout throws with us, so we are confident that he will be able to fill that void for us in these matches.
"We are also excited to see how Canan slots in during the next few weeks and to see how he adapts to our structures and systems, and we believe he has the skills to slot in for Kurt-Lee and Cheslin.
"This is a settled group of players and includes a wide spread of experience and young players who have made their presence felt, and we believe that they have what it takes to guide us back on track in the Rugby Championship in the matches against Australia."
South Africa squad to tour Australia:
Forwards: Steven Kitshoff, Vincent Koch, Frans Malherbe, Ox Nche, Trevor Nyakane, Joseph Dweba, Malcolm Marx, Eben Etzebeth, Lood de Jager, Salmaan Moerat, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Siya Kolisi (captain), Elrigh Louw, Kwagga Smith, Jasper Wiese, Duane Vermeulen, Deon Fourie, Franco Mostert.
Backs: Faf de Klerk, Jaden Hendrikse, Herschel Jantjies, Cobus Reinach, Elton Jantjies, Handre Pollard, Lukhanyo Am, Damian de Allende, Andre Esterhuizen, Makazole Mapimpi, Willie le Roux, Canan Moodie, Warrick Gelant, Damian Willemse, Jesse Kriel, Frans Steyn.
By virtue of their outstanding play during the recent Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, Jamaica’s Sunshine Girls have moved up a place in World Netball’s global rankings.
The Sunshine Girls who defeated world number-one Australia and number-two New Zealand before losing to Australia in the final, have climbed a spot to number three in the world rankings released on Monday.
Meanwhile, Barbados’ Gems failed to win a single match at the Commonwealth Games and have dropped two places to 14th in the rankings. Trinidad and Tobago, meanwhile, fell one place to 11th.
According to World Netball, “Since the last WN World Rankings update published, on March 1, 2022, many international test series and events have taken place including the PacificAUS Series, Europe Netball Open Challenge, COSANA Tri-Nations Series, Wales International Test Series, Netball World Cup 2023 Qualifiers – Oceania, and most recently, the 38 matches at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“Within the top six teams Jamaica has moved up to third in the world, whilst England has dropped to fourth, this comes after Jamaica made history at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games making their first final and winning a silver medal.”
World Netball said the new rankings mean that world number-one Australia, New Zealand (2), Jamaica (3) and England (4) will now be invited to compete at the NWC2023. Uganda (6) will also be invited; they have also qualified through their world ranking, due to South Africa (5) pre-qualifying as hosts.
The Netball World Cup 2023 Qualifier – Oceania has already taken place with Tonga and Fiji qualifying to be invited by World Netball to compete at the event.
Tonga finished unbeaten at both the PacificAUS Series in March 2022 and the Netball World Cup Qualifier Oceania in July 2022.
World Netball requires teams to have played six or more matches in the ranking period to be eligible for a World Ranking. Tonga has reached this threshold again and they now regain a world ranking, entering 9th place in the world. This is a remarkable achievement as their highest previous ranking was 19th.
Malta (35) Israel (39) and Switzerland (45) have also regained a ranking after playing the required number of matches by competing at the Europe Netball Open Challenge in May.
The success of Tonga has led to Scotland moving down one place to 10, and Trinidad & Tobago and Northern Ireland also moving down one place to 11 and 12.
There have also been many changes lower down the table with Barbados, Cook Islands and Samoa all moving down two places, whilst the Republic of Ireland have moved up four places to 24th after winning the Europe Netball Open Challenge.
Two-time Grand Tour winner Egan Bernal will make his return to racing on Tuesday after seven months out of action following a serious training crash.
The INEOS Grenadiers rider was training near his home city of Bogota in January when he struck a parked bus while riding at high speed.
The collision left Bernal requiring surgery on his spine, while he also suffered two collapsed lungs, fractures in his right leg and kneecap, a broken thumb and a lost tooth.
Bernal spent several days in intensive care and later said the crash nearly killed him, while he believed there was a 95 per cent likelihood "of becoming a paraplegic".
In February, he had a second operation on his spine before eventually returning to the bike a month later.
Now, his team confirmed he will make his comeback to racing in the Tour of Denmark – which begins on Tuesday – after this final step of his rehabilitation was approved by medical staff.
Bernal said: "After what happened to me in January this has been the moment I've been waiting for – to race with my team-mates again.
"I can't emphasise enough how hard the last eight months have been for me, both physically and mentally. That day, and the journey that I have been on since will be a part of me forever, it's something you never forget, as is the support that I have received from my family, my girlfriend, the team, INEOS as well as my fans.
"As humans we really rely on each other in our times of need, and this year has been a time of need for me – I can't thank everyone who has been there for me enough.
"That support has been invaluable in motivating me every day to work hard to be able to race again. To you all, a heartfelt thank you."
Deputy team principal, Rod Ellingworth, added: "When you think back to where Egan was only eight months ago, it's incredible the progress he has made.
"He's shown the world the true strength of his character, and demonstrated remarkable grit in returning to race-readiness. We're still on a journey with Egan, but lining up at the Tour of Denmark is a significant and hard-earned milestone.
"Egan's long-term recovery has and continues to guide our medical and physical programme of support – our targets have always been performance-led not race-led, and the entire INEOS Grenadiers family is proud and delighted for Egan that his determination and application will now see him return to the race environment he has craved for so long."
Primoz Roglic has been passed fit to go in search of a fourth consecutive Vuelta a Espana title.
Roglic abandoned the Tour de France last month after suffering a dislocated shoulder and a back injury when he crashed on stage five.
The Slovenian battled on despite those injuries before withdrawing ahead of stage 15.
Roglic will be Jumbo-Visma's main man in the Vuelta, though, having recovered to ensure he will be on the start line in Utrecht on Friday.
Jumbo-Visma sports director Merijn Zeeman said: "We are delighted that Primoz can start in the Vuelta after his serious injury in the Tour de France.
"Logically, he didn't have the best preparation, but we greatly respect him for how he managed to get ready.
"We have a good and balanced team at the start that can optimally support Primoz in all areas. It is a pity that Koen Bouwman will not make it to the start due to his injury. We would have loved to see him in the Vuelta in the great form he displayed during the last Giro d'Italia."
American climber Sepp Kuss and double time trial world champion Rohan Dennis from Australia are among Roglic's team-mates in the Vuelta.
Brittney Griner's defence team has appealed against her nine-year prison sentence in Russia.
The WNBA star was this month jailed for drug possession and drug smuggling with criminal intent for bringing under a gram of cannabis oil into the country nearly six months ago.
Judge Anna Sotnikova rejected Griner's apology and plea for leniency. Griner said she had made an "honest mistake".
Griner was arrested in Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport on February 17 for carrying vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage. She was returning to Russia, where she has played since 2014 during the WNBA offseason.
The eight-time WNBA All-Star was, her lawyers argued, using cannabis for medicinal purposes to treat chronic pain sustained over the course of her career.
The two-time Olympic champion said she accidentally packed the cartridges and was unaware cannabis oil was outlawed in Russia.
United States president Joe Biden slammed the sentence as "unacceptable" and Griner's lawyer Maria Blagovolina told Reuters on Monday that an appeal had been filed.
The US government and Russia are engaged in prisoner swap negotiations that, if successful, would see Griner released to return home.
Ian Foster expects to stay on as All Blacks head coach as New Zealand Rugby bosses "take stock" following the win over South Africa on Saturday.
There remains uncertainty over Foster's future despite a 35-23 Rugby Championship victory over the world champions at Ellis Park.
New Zealand had lost five of their past six Tests - and three in a row - before stopping the rot in Johannesburg.
NZ Rugby chief executive Mark Robinson had only guaranteed Foster would remain in his role for the two clashes with the Springboks and revealed there would be a debrief following a defeat and a win in South Africa.
He said on Sunday: "We've been having conversations right through this time, we believe we know where we stand and we've just got to work through that with him.
"We'll take stock of the conversations, the information coming out of the camp and comment later in the week."
Robinson added: "These have been challenging times right through the last few weeks. There is a huge amount of passion and speculation, a huge amount of expectation around the team and organisation, and we need to take the time we've got to set this team up for everything it needs to be successful."
Foster remained defiant, stating that he was not aware of Robinson's comments.
"I haven't heard or read those comments, but he's got a job to do," Foster told reporters. "I'm about to hop on a plane and go home.
"I'll be given feedback, no doubt, but my expectations are that I'm the All Blacks head coach and later in the week I'll be going to Christchurch and assembling the team until I'm told different."
Ardie Savea said he is "100 per cent" behind Foster following the win at the weekend and the head coach says he knows the players want him to keep his job.
"I certainly feel that I have the support and backing of the All Blacks," he said.
"There's still processes New Zealand Rugby want to go through. To coach this team, you have to have categoric support."
Will Zalatoris took inspiration from Steph Curry and received congratulations from movie star Adam Sandler after getting the monkey off his back with a memorable first PGA Tour triumph.
Having made a terrific clutch par at the final hole, Zalatoris defeated Sepp Straka in an eventful play-off to win the FedEx St. Jude Championship on Sunday.
After sinking his left-to-right putt from 10 feet at his 72nd hole, Zalatoris yelled "what are they gonna say now?" in a seeming reference to those who have questioned whether he has a strong enough putting game to win the big tournaments.
Zalatoris, who grew up in the Bay Area and later moved to Dallas, said it was an acknowledgement to Golden State Warriors star Curry, a big golf fan himself, who had uttered the same words when his team won the NBA title.
"I did say that," said Zalatoris.
"Yeah, you know, I'm a big Warriors fan and obviously Steph, he's a Cal Club guy, he's a pretty big inspiration obviously. I follow the Warriors like crazy and when he said that, it kind of related to kind of my journey so far.
"So being that close and then kind of being written off here and there and then obviously finally pulling off, it was – I actually can't believe I said that actually."
Zalatoris had been in danger of becoming golf's nearly man having lost play-offs at the Farmers Insurance Open and US PGA Championship, and tied for second at the U.S. Open.
"Yeah, it's kind of hard to say 'about time' when it's your second year on Tour, but about time," he added.
Zalatoris' win was made all the more impressive by the fact he had gone through the upheaval of changing caddies.
He opted to part with Ryan Goble midway through last week's Wyndham Championship, explaining how he did not want the stress of professional golf to put a strain on their friendship.
In his place came the experienced Joel Stock, who Zalatoris said had helped keep him in the moment.
"We tried to communicate as much as we possibly could Monday through Wednesday to make this adjustment as easy as possible," he said,
"But you never know what it's going to be like until you're in the heat of the moment. Joel was really playing more sports psychologist today. He was awesome. He was ripping dad jokes the entire day to try to keep it loose, and they're terrible but it gave us some pretty good laughs and kept it light.
"When the moment needed to be serious he told me to focus on my breathing. He did an amazing job."
And after his special win, Zalatoris earned recognition from Sandler, a man who has previously interacted with the 25-year-old.
It was noted how Zalatoris bears a resemblance to the caddy for Sandler's 'Happy Gilmore' character.
Posting on Twitter, Sandler wrote: " Congrats Will! I’m happy for you! Happy’s happy for you! Enjoy it all!"
Giannis Antetokounmpo says only a "liar" would state that they do not want to play for the Chicago Bulls but he is committed to the Milwaukee Bucks for now.
Antetokounmpo has only ever played for the Bucks in the NBA and signed a blockbuster new long-term deal contract in December 2020.
The two-time NBA MVP is not contemplating leaving Milwaukee but gave a frank answer when asked if playing for the Bulls would interest him.
Antetokounmpo told Fox 32 Chicago Sports: "I think anybody you ask that question that plays basketball, if he said no he would be a liar.
"It's a team that won multiple championships, it's a team that one of the greatest players [Michael Jordan], if not the greatest player, to play this game played for.
"So, it's a no-brainer, everybody would love to play for Chicago. Down the line you never know.
"Maybe I'll play for Chicago, but right now I'm committed to Milwaukee."
New Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels gushed over the atmosphere during his first game at Allegiant Stadium, where his side defeated the Minnesota Vikings 26-20 on Sunday.
With the established stars all sitting out, Raiders backup quarterbacks Nick Mullens and Jarrett Stidham both performed well, with Mullens going seven-for-nine for 94 yards and a touchdown, while Stidham completed 10-of-15 passes for 68 yards, also adding 16 yards and a rushing touchdown with his legs.
In a game that featured veteran receivers Demarcus Robinson, Keelan Cole and Mack Hollins, it was rookie D.J. Turner who stood out for the Raiders, with 58 yards and a touchdown while catching three of his four targets.
Over 61,000 packed into Allegiant Stadium for their first taste of competitive football this season, and McDaniels said he had never seen anything like it for what is essentially a meaningless game.
"This was a special day," he said. "I've been around a lot of preseason games over 22 years, and I don't remember one feeling like this.
"The reception from our fans – getting to know Raider nation the way that you see them now – it's just different.
"I've competed against them a handful of times in my time in the NFL, but to now be on the same side, you understand why it is what it is.
"I'm lucky and blessed to be the head coach here. That is the best atmosphere in a preseason game that I've ever been a part of, and that's easy to say that, clearly.
"I can't wait to play another time in here, and then get to the regular season and have the opportunity to do it for real in regular games, but what a great, passionate fanbase we have. To have the girls here, and my son on the sideline, it's a special day."
Drew Rasmussen retired the first 24 batters he faced on Sunday consecutively, before losing his perfect game bid in the ninth inning of the Tampa Bay Rays’ 4-1 home win over the Baltimore Orioles.
Rasmussen was three outs from the first perfect game in franchise history before Baltimore’s Jorge Mateo doubled down the left-field line on the first pitch of the ninth inning.
The 27-year-old right-hander faced two more hitters, one of which reached first base on a wild pitch after striking out, before being relieved by Jason Adam with one out. Rasmussen also threw a wild pitch earlier in the inning that allowed Mateo to score the Orioles’ lone run.
Rasmussen finished with seven strikeouts while yielding just the one hit in eight-and-a-third innings – his longest outing in the majors.
"I mean, I’ll take it," he said after the game. "I wouldn’t say it was disappointing. I came that close, and very few can say they’ve done that, too."
It is the second time in Rays history they have carried a perfect game into the ninth inning. Ryne Stanek and Ryan Yarbrough combined to retire the first 24 Baltimore hitters before having that bid also foiled with none out in the ninth against the Orioles on July 14, 2019.
The victory moved Tampa Bay one-and-a-half games ahead of the Orioles for the third and final wild card spot in the American League
Future first-ballot Hall-of-Famer Albert Pujols turned back the clock in the St Louis Cardinals' 6-3 win against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, connecting on two long home runs.
It was a game where every run came via the long-ball, with Brewers outfielder Hunter Renfroe getting things started as he blasted a two-run homer in the second inning.
The Brewers would not score again until the ninth frame as Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas put in a terrific performance, giving up two runs from four hits and no walks in eight complete innings, striking out six.
With the bat, the Cardinals registered their first tally later in the second when Pujols sent a 392-foot lead-off shot over the left-field wall, and after three innings of scoreless baseball, Tyler O'Neill tied the game at 2-2 with a 420-foot moonshot to center-field.
Heading into the eighth inning with the scores tied, Dylan Carlson was the next to connect on a home run – the shortest of the game at 373 feet – and after an infield single to O'Neill and a walk to NL MVP favourite Paul Goldschmidt, Pujols stepped back up to the plate and launched a 443-foot nuke to left.
The 443-foot blast from Pujols was his longest of the season, and more than 20 feet further than any of his home runs that he hit in last month's Home Run Derby. He is only the third player in MLB history to have more than one game with multiple home runs after turning 42 years old – along with Barry Bonds and Carlton Fisk – and his 63 career multi-homer games is the fifth most ever.
With the win, the Cardinals opened up a one-and-a-half game lead over the Brewers atop the NL Central.
Yankees go down at Fenway Park
The New York Yankees have now lost four series in a row after being shut-out by the Boston Red Sox 3-0 on Sunday night.
It was a starring performance on the mound from Red Sox starter Michael Wacha in his return from injury, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out nine batters in seven innings.
Despite the Yankees only collecting two hits total for the night, the game was locked at 1-0 until the sixth inning when Red Sox star Rafael Devers – who many consider the future of the franchise – gave his side some breathing room with a 433-foot, two-run home run.
The Yankees still hold a 10-game lead in their division, but now trail the Houston Astros by two-and-a-half games for the best record in the American League.
Estrada walks it off for the Giants
Thairo Estrada treated the San Francisco Giants home fans to a walk-off home run as they defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-7.
In the back-and-forth contest, the Giants jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, but the Pirates came storming back to lead 6-5 after a massive 442-foot, three-run homer from Bryan Reynolds in the seventh inning. Reynolds would finish the game three-for-four at the plate with five RBIs.
The Giants evened things up later in the seventh, before the Pirates were able to grab a lead in the ninth inning due to a fielding error, but they got away with it as Estrada delivered the winning blow with one out.
Will Zalatoris held his nerve for a clutch par putt on the 72nd hole to force a playoff at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, setting up a dramatic three-hole showdown where he defeated Sepp Straka to claim his first career PGA Tour win.
Straka came into Sunday's final round at 12 under – one stroke off leader J.J. Spaun – while Zalatoris was one shot further back at 11 under with Cameron Smith. When Spaun imploded, going on to shoot Sunday's worst round with a 78, and Smith was handed a two-stroke penalty prior to his round for an illegal drop earlier in the tournament, the field fell away and left just Straka and Zalatoris at the top.
Zalatoris continued to shed his reputation as a poor putter, and he did so in the biggest moments, draining a must-make 10-footer on the last hole to finish his tournament at 15 under, where he and Straka were three strokes clear of the pack – and the playoff was anything but boring.
On the first playoff hole – the 18th, which was playing as the toughest hole on the course – both players reached the green in regulation, and while neither were in true birdie range, Zalatoris had a significantly longer distance to cover. But he showed why he was ranked number one for lag putting this week and was able to tap-in from a foot to head to the second hole.
Replaying the 18th, Zalatoris' tee shot hit the cart path, seemingly handing Straka the tournament, but then Straka put his tee shot so close to the water's edge that he opted to take the penalty instead of trying to hack one out with a foot in the water.
Straka pulled off what would usually be a title-winning approach shot, taking an aggressive line and landing six feet from the hole, but due to the penalty stroke it allowed Zalatoris to chip back out into the fairway and bring his approach to just over 10 feet, where he would sink another incredibly gutsy putt to extend things to a third playoff hole.
After losing two playoffs this season, Zalatoris would have felt the trophy slipping out of his hands when his tee shot on the par-three 11th hole found the rock wall on the fringe of the water. He was not in the water, but the shot was unplayable, meaning a par would give Straka the win – and then Straka landed in the water.
The Austrian's next shot sailed over the green into the bunker, while Zalatoris' second try at his approach was perfect, giving himself another seven-footer for the win, and he made no mistakes.
With the win, Zalatoris avoided becoming the player with the most prize money in a season without a victory, raising his season earnings to over $9million in the process with his $2.7m winner's cheque.
American duo Lucas Glover and Brian Harman finished tied for third at 12 under, while Spain's Jon Rahm, England's Matt Fitzpatrick and Australia's Adam Scott were part of the seven-man group tied for fifth at 11 under.
After his two-stroke penalty, Cameron Smith finished at nine under with rising star Joo-hyung 'Tom' Kim, with Viktor Hovland at eight under, and Wyndham Clark snuck into the next round of the playoffs as his seven under finish moved him up to exactly 70th in the FedEx Cup standings.
Pablo Carreno-Busta came back from a set down to mount a superb comeback against Hubert Hurkacz and win the first ATP 1000 event of his career on Sunday.
The Spaniard became the first unseeded player to win the tournament since Guilhermo Canas in 2002 after weathering an early storm to shock the eighth seed 3-6 6-3 6-3 in Montreal.
Having come through a gruelling semi-final encounter with Dan Evans to reach his first ATP 1000 final in singles, the Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist struggled to deal with his opponent's impressive slew of aces in the first set, and saw his serve broken in the sixth game.
But a ruthless start to the second set saw Carreno-Busta break early, racing out to a 3-0 lead and holding his nerve to keep the gap to his Polish opponent, who was chasing a second ATP 1000 crown.
World number 10 Hurkacz attempted to rally with a fine start to the third set, but another loss of serve effectively stalled his momentum and Carreno-Busta was able to take the victory.
The result marks a much-needed boost for Carreno-Busta, who suffered first-round exits at the French Open and Wimbledon after making the last-16 in Australia, with the U.S. Open set to start later this month.
Serena Williams is "one of the greatest of all time", says fellow tennis legend Rafael Nadal as the 23-time grand slam winner prepares to hang up her racquet.
The 40-year-old, one of the most decorated players in the history of the sport, signalled her intent to "evolve away" from the game in an interview with Vogue Magazine earlier this month, hinting at her retirement following the U.S. Open in September.
With just shy of two-dozen grand slam singles titles, Williams trails only Margaret Court for the all-time record of 24 crowns, and could equal her in her farewell appearance.
Nadal, meanwhile, lies one behind her after victory in the Australian Open and French Open this year took him clear of Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer to 22, though the former's win at Wimbledon has seen him close the gap again.
The duo are set to feature at this week's Western and Southern Open, where Williams will face incumbent U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu, and the Spaniard - who will mark his return from injury - has nothing but praise for his fellow giant of the game.
"She is one of the greatest sports [people] of all time," he stated. "I feel lucky to share a tour for a long period of time with her.
"Of course, from a selfish point of view, it's sad that she's leaving the tour but, on the other hand, we can't thank her enough for all the things that she did for our sport.
"I think she's an amazing inspiration for a lot of people around the world and I think she deserves to choose whatever works for her better at this stage of her life.
"So I wish her all the best. Hopefully, we can keep seeing her around the tour because I always believe that our sport, or the sport in general, is bigger and better when legends are around and she is a legend.
"Hopefully, we can enjoy her in a different way around the tour."
Nadal was forced to withdraw ahead of the Wimbledon semi-finals earlier this year with an abdominal tear, and now faces a potentially nervy run through to the U.S. Open in terms of fitness.
But the 36-year-old is cautiously optimistic, adding: "I hope to be ready. That's what I'm trying to do. Try to be a little more conservative, but I hope I can be ready to play.
"Of course, I need some more days to analyse how things are going in terms of abdominal feeling.
"But things are going well for the moment, so hopefully I can manage to be ready. I'm excited. I want to play tennis again on the tour. I'm having a good season, I'm enjoying it, so I want to enjoy this week in Cincinnati."
Simona Halep secured victory against Beatriz Haddad Maia in the Canada Open final on Sunday, though was given a tougher test than she had otherwise experienced throughout the tournament.
The Romanian was a 6-3 2-6 6-3 victor, dropping a set for only the second time in the week, but standing firm in the clash that clocked in at over two hours.
That meant records for Haddad Maia, who has played the most WTA-level matches with three sets in 2022 (20) and spent over 12-and-a-half hours on the court at the Canada Open in 2022, more than any other player in a single WTA tournament this year.
Wimbledon semi-finalist Halep proved to be a step too far for the Brazilian, however, with the win marking her most significant honour since winning in Rome in 2020.
It was far from a vintage performance from the 30-year-old, who had nine double-faults in the match compared to Haddad Maia's two and left the door open for the South American - who was vying for victory in her first ever WTA 1000 event.
Halep had already clinched a return to the world top 10 by reaching the final in Toronto, the first time since her 373-week stint ended just over a week ago - which led to admissions that she considered calling it quits amid her decline.
A valiant comeback in 2022 has been one of the major stories of the calendar year though and, on the back of victory in Canada and a semi-final march at Wimbledon, will have high hopes for the U.S. Open.
Four weeks to the day before the Cincinnati Bengals open their 2022 season, Joe Burrow was back on the practice field for the first time since undergoing surgery to remove his appendix 2 and a half weeks ago.
It's uncertain how much work Burrow did during Sunday morning's walkthrough, though the 25-year-old quarterback returned from the practice field in his jersey while carrying his helmet.
Prior to the Bengals' Sunday afternoon practice, the team tweeted out a short video of Burrow in shoulder pads and a practice jersey to tease fans of his return.
A return to the practice field appeared imminent after he took part in some pre-game sprints ahead of the Bengals' preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals on Friday night.
Sidelined since his appendectomy on July 26, Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor had just said last week Burrow was feeling better but didn’t want to put a timetable on when he would return.
The Bengals open the season on September 11 against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the team has always indicated Burrow would be healthy enough to start the opener.
After a knee injury cut short his 2020 rookie season, Burrow is coming off a sensational 2021, in which he led the Bengals to their first Super Bowl appearance since the 1988 season, while ranking second in passer rating (108.3), sixth in passing yards (4,611) and eighth in touchdown passes (34).
He's baaaaack pic.twitter.com/vAGuTxEU4z
— Cincinnati Bengals (@Bengals) August 14, 2022Frank Warren has revealed his surprise following Tyson Fury's latest retirement announcement, but insists his wishes must be supported.
The Gypsy King has not fought since successfully defending his belts against Dillian Whyte at Wembley in April, where he immediately expressed his intention to retire.
However, Fury excited fans last week when he announced his intention to return to the ring with a fight against Derek Chisora, while the winner of Anthony Joshua's rematch against Oleksandr Usyk was also touted as a likely opponent.
Nevertheless, he again reiterated his desire to retire on Friday - his 34th birthday - and vacated his Ring Magazine heavyweight title belt.
Although this is not the first time that Fury has announced his intention to hang up his gloves, he has not previously relinquished a belt.
And his decision came as a surprise to co-promoter Warren, who told Fight Night on talkSPORT: "At the end of the day, if that's what he wants to do, that's his right to do it.
"He was actually looking forward to fighting last week; he was actually talking about fighting, but that's how he feels at the moment.
"If that's how he feels, that's how it is; we've all got to support what he's doing.
"I spoke to him a few times last week, and he told me he's weighing exactly what he was weighing for his last fight against Dillian Whyte – that's how hard he's training."
But Warren is hopeful that Fury will perform another U-turn for a crack at the winner of the eagerly anticipated bout between Joshua and Usyk on August 20.
"I know he's frustrated and next week - the 20th - it's a big, big fight, and all eyes will be on it," he added.
"Whoever wins that fight, everyone will want to see him fight Tyson. If Tyson wants to do it, he will. If he doesn't, he won't."
Scotsman Ewen Ferguson held onto the lead across the last day of the ISPS Handa World Invitational to clinch victory and his second tour win of the season, despite posting a disappointing score in the final round.
Ferguson's score of 69 was the joint-highest among those to have finished in the top four, but he remained ahead courtesy of a stunning day-one score, where he finished nine under par.
Borja Virto and Connor Syme, finishing joint-second, could only cut their deficit by a single stroke as they finished three behind Ferguson, while Italian Renato Paratore surged up the standings to finish joint-fourth with a final round score of six under par.
Paratore's 64 was tied as the best score in the final round with Jordan Smith, with the 12th-ranked Brit rising 14 places on the final day to finish joint-seventh.
In the women's tournament, Maja Stark won her first LPGA event with a final round score of 63 - shattering the course record to finish five strokes ahead of second-placed Allisen Corpuz.
The Swede entered the final day tied for fourth place but a stunning performance to finish 10 under par in the fourth round propelled her to the top of the standings.
The team of Dr Mark Newnham and Michael Gleichman stood atop the leaderboard at the end of the second day of the CAGC Four-Ball Championship trials at the Caymanas Golf Club on Saturday.
Of the five teams attempting to qualify to represent the country in the Francis & Steele Perkins Trophy, the leading pair scored that scored a one-under-par 71 during Friday’s first round play shot a five-under-par 65 on Saturday for a two-day total of 136.
The team of Owen Samuda and Philip Prendergast, who carded a 73 on Saturday for a total of 146, trail the lead pair. Seven strokes further behind were William Lee and Philip Gooden, whose 75 on Saturday for an overall score of 157.
Meanwhile, the pair of Sean Morris and Delroy Johnson seeking to qualify for Ramon Baez Cup, shot a 69 on Saturday to improve on their opening round score of 75.
Eight teams turned up to the trials for the qualifying spot in the Higgs & Higgs Cup. At the end of play on Saturday, three teams were locked on identical scores of 145.
Michael Boyd and Bert Tomlinson, the early leaders at the end of play Friday with 69 followed up with a 74. The tight competition continued with former JGA president Wayne Chai-Chong and Rory Jardine joining forces to post scores of 71 and 74 to share the lead.
Team Dorrel Allen and Robert Chin scored 72 and 73 on Friday and Saturday, respectively, totalling 145 over the two days.
According to the USGA’s (US Golf Association) Rules of Golf, four-ball stroke play is a competition in which two competitors play as partners, each playing his own ball. The lower score of the partners is the score for the hole.
Sunday's third and final day of competition teed off at 7:30 am.
The trials will be used to select the team for Jamaica's defence of the Ambrose Gouthro Trophy which it first won in 2019 in Florida. There was no competition in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
